Future Present
by Enigma-Nemesis
Summary: After SIII. Chris sighed, knowing that she will never age with the True Water Rune and not willing to give up her father's last gift, she resigns to her inevitably lonely future. However, fate has something in store for her...


**"Future Present"**

A Suikoden III fanfiction revolved around Chris Lightfellow.

By Enigma-Nemesis (daous on Mediaminer)

**DISCLAIMER:** don't own Suikoden III. However, if I did, I would make a S III spin-off based on Chris Lightfellow. Unfortunately, I don't, so I am forced to write a fanfiction. This is my fanfiction XD. Read and enjoy!

**A/N:** This is a just-for-fun fiction and my first Suikoden III fic. I haven't played S III for a year, so don't flame me if there's some OoC-ness. I unexpectedly wrote the beginning a bit too seriously compared to my usual style of writing, but I decided to keep it since it seemed to fit my image of Lady Chris. The later chapters will be a lot less serious. I will update whenever I can.

**DIALOGUE(s) LEGEND**:

"talking"  
'thoughts'

* * *

Future Present 

Prologue:

Two days ago, the border dispute between the Republic of Tinto and the Zexen Federation ended. The dispute, which lasted roughly a month, ended peacefully with Tinto claiming most of the disputed land. It is unusual for the Zexen Council to give up without too much of a fight, but considering that the daughter of Tinto's mayor, Lilly Pendragon, returned to her homeland to resolve the crisis, they couldn't to anything. Especially considering the fact that she was aided by Flame Champion Hugo, who played an influential role in the peace treaty between the Zexen Federation and the Grasslands. Furthermore, Chris Lightfellow, Silver Maiden of the Zexen Knights, is a friend of the Tinto mayor's daughter and a former ally during the war against the Harmonian invasion, making things all the more difficult. In the end, they were forced to give up "their" land.

oOo

In the dark of the night, the silhouette of a lone, armor-clad figure could be seen strolling down the streets of Vinay Del Zexay, in the direction of the harbour. The moonlight reflected off the armor, revealing a set of armor from the Zexen army. However, this was no ordinary Zexen armor, since its color appeared to be slightly whiter than your typical one. Anyone who didn't notice that could still easily recognize the unique Zexen armor: there was an orange and gold colored "skirt" that shielded from the waist down to the middle part of the tall, leather boots.

The armor, with the skirt-like armor for the lower body, is only worn by the Six Mighty Zexen Knights. Deciphering who of the mighty six was walking down the street right now was easy to do, since the aforementioned figure had several characteristic features that the other 5 didn't have. However, there was one that was noticeable regardless of the time of day: long, silver hair, currently braided for convenience in fights. The figure was none other than the only female knight in the history of the Zexen Army. Chris Lightfellow, captain of the Zexen Knights and daughter of the deceased knight, Sir Wyatt Lightfellow.

oOo

Lady Chris was returning home after a tiresome month of participating in the Zexen-Tinto border disputes on behalf of the Zexen Council.

"Lazy old fools..." Chris muttered, exhausted from the several negotiations that lasted around five hours on average. Chris was thankful that Salome was present, because if it wasn't for his excellent and persuasive communication skills, she and the rest of the Six Mighty Zexen Knights would've been stuck in those negotiations for an additional four hours or so. Times like these she wondered why the Zexen Councilmen themselves didn't bother showing up in the meetings, since they were the ones who started that whole mess.

'Damn politics...' Chris mentally cursed. The things she did for those greedy old merchants and all because of her pride and honor as an obedient Zexen knight. If it weren't for those two things she would've walked out of the Merchant's Guild every time they ordered her to do something that would satisfy their greedy little agendas, ignoring whatever complaints they would have on her way out.

Unfortunately, that was not the case.

She gave a tired and defeated sigh as she pushed open the gate to the Lightfellow family's mansion, which Chris inherited from her father since his disappearance. For a brief moment she recalled her first and last meeting with her father after he mysteriously vanished for all those years.

oOo

_FLASHBACK_

She remembered standing there, at the Cyndar Ruins, looking down at the man known to the Karayans as Jimba, her father.

She remembered how he spoke and revealed himself to be her father, though she had a feeling of who he was anyway.

"You look just like Anna, your mother..."

That was one of the last things he told her before his eyes closed and never opened again.

She remembered a moment before that, and how those nearly lifeless yet strong-willed eyes were staring up at her. They were filled with happiness, yet at the same time with regret and sorrow... regret for abandoning his family, and sorrow for not being there for his daughter, especially after hearing his wife and her mother die from a sickness. He decided to not return, thus abandoning her when she needed him the most. He felt so ashamed and unworthy of her daughter's love afterwards that he decided to never return again, afraid of how her daughter would feel for him not ever showing up for Anna's funeral.

Soon after his passing, the True Water Rune flowed out of his body and transferred to her... a final inheritance from her father before he disappeared once again, and this time, forever.

oOo

PRESENT

A single tear rolled down her right cheek, leaving a glittery, moist trail. By the end of her emotional recollection, she was already inside her house, standing in the center of the living room. Lady Chris sat down on the couch with a sad expression on her face. She placed a hand on the wrist which held the True Water Rune and shuddered slightly.

She didn't like recalling the past. It was filled with too many bad memories... her father's disappearance, her mother's death, the struggle through knighthood, Captian Galahad and Pelize's death, her murdering of the Karayan child, Lulu, Yun's sacrifice, and her father's murder by the hands of Luc and his followers. Everytime she thought about it she would feel depressed. Her exhaustion from the Tinto-Zexen disputes weren't making things better either.

The Silver Maiden remained silent, staring at the bright orange fire in the fireplace, which was always lit by her family's butler, Andrew, before he went to sleep, in case she came home late at night. She silently expressed her gratitude for Andrew, who would always lend a helping hand whenever she needed it. He acted as a second father for her, and voluntarily stayed with her throughout all her struggles and hardships.

Chris paused her current thoughts for a moment as she realized something she had forgotten about. As the bearer of the True Water Rune, she was granted immortality. This meant that she would live on longer than anyone without one of the True Runes. As the years go by, her comrades, the only people she relied on since her family passed away, would grow older, continuing on with their lives. Some will get married, have children of their own, and pass away as grandparents. Others will die honorably in the inevitable battles against Zexen's enemies. Regardless of what goals her friends will have for the future, the years will go by and she will be standing behind them, watching them get farther and farther away from her. She will witness the death of her friends, Percival, Borus, Salome, Roland, Leo, Andrew, and many others perish before her very eyes. However, she will never age, and once all her friends leave her, what will she do?

Of course, she will make new friends throughout her eternally youthful life, but like her current friends, they will eventually pass away. The cycle of making and losing her friends will repeat in an endless, bitter cycle. The only way she will be able to end it is if she is killed violently, which is something that Lady Chris did not wish to experience. Even if she wanted to, the fighting skills she has honed to perfection since the beginning of her knighthood training will defend herself instinctively. Guess she can't get out of this inevitable torture after all. No matter what, she will experience that same horrible feeling of loneliness that she felt the day her mother died. And it will happen again, and again, and again...

Chris smiled sadly.

"In the end, everyone I care for will leave me, and I will be all alone."

After a few more minutes of thinking silently, she sighed one last time before she stood up and went upstairs to change out of her armor, take a bath, and go to sleep, completely unaware of what was waiting in store for her in the very near future.

* * *

A/N: So, what does everyone think so far? The story will truly begin in the next chapter, but I felt this prologue had to be shown for future chapters. The fic is currently planned to be about 10 to 12 chapters long, and maybe more depending on how it ends and how people think. So please drop in a review and express your opinions and impressions to the story so far. I can't guarantee when I'll update again, but I'm hoping I'll get it out soon (as in by the end of January 2006). 


End file.
